What Are Drugs
What Are Drugs?
Drugs are substances that are used as medication or in the preparation of medication. Drugs are listed in
official pharmacopoeia or drug formularies.
They are substances that are used to treat diseases, or to prevent diseases. They are substances other than food
that intended to have an affect on the structure or the function of the human body.
They can also be a component of medication or a part of a device. There are also illegal substances that are
illegal drugs that cause addiction, and cause habitual drug usage. Therefore drugs can have a beneficial affect or
a harmful affect on the human body depending on what form they are used and for what purpose they are used.
There are many ways to categorize drugs including hard drugs, soft drugs, uppers, downers, addictive drugs, and
also non-addictive drugs. You can also categorize them as most harmful, and least harmful. You can categorize drugs
as legal or illegal.
Drugs can also be categorized by the effect they have on the human body including stimulants, depressants, and
hallucinogens. There are drugs for health used in the treatment of illnesses.
There are three categories of drug interactions that include: Two or more drugs reacting to each other such as taking a sleeping pill and an allergy pill at the same time Another interaction can be between a drug you are taking and a beverage such as alcohol having an effect on certain drugs that will make you sleepy The last category is when a medical condition has a potentially harmful effect on the medication such as experiencing an increase in blood pressure when taking a certain decongestant that could make someone with high blood pressure be in a harmful condition Drugs and Medicine |
Stimulants increase the activity of the central nervous system. The central nervous system includes the brain
and the spinal cord. The drugs that are included in the stimulant category are alkyl nitrites, amphetamines,
anabolic steroids, cocaine, caffeine, ecstasy and also tobacco.
Depressants are drugs that have the opposite affect on the central nervous system because they reduce the
activity of the central nervous system. Drugs in the depressant category include alcohol, barbiturates,
benzodiazepines, heroin, and also solvents.
Hallucinogens are drugs that alter how we perceive reality and may result in the individual taking them to
experience hallucinations. Drugs in the category of hallucinogens are cannabis, LSD, and also magic mushrooms.
Does the medication have a systemic effect on the body (more than one body system)? Drugs and Medicine |
There are also ways to categorize health drugs such as prescription drugs and non-prescription drugs also called
over-the-counter drugs. There are drugs used for treating infections called antibiotics, drugs used to control
asthma, to alleviate the symptoms of allergies, psychotic drugs, drugs that alleviate allergic reactions to other
drugs, and there are drugs that treat side effects of chemotherapy.
There are many methods of administering drugs such as injecting drugs (subcutaneous, intradermal, intramuscular,
intravenous, and also intrathecal or intraspinal. Drugs can also be inhaled as when used to treat asthma.
They can also be vaporized, or nebulized. They can be taken orally, or rectally and also those that are given
vaginally.
Today, drugs can be purchased from drug stores, grocery stores, other retail stores, and also online.
Illegal drugs are purchased from individuals on the streets, and even sadly from kids at school. Doctors
prescribe drugs that are filled by pharmacists.
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